Current Students and Staff

// University News

30 Mar 2015

Building skills for life – Loughborough maths course aims to boost knowledge and employability

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Loughborough University will run a free online numeracy skills refresher course to help boost people’s employment prospects.

Poor numeracy skills can often be a barrier to employment and, with numeracy tests becoming a regular part of the recruitment process, the University’s Mathematics Education Centre is opening its doors to anyone who wishes to build on their basic understanding of mathematics.

The three-week FutureLearn course entitled Numeracy Skills for Employability and the Workplace is particularly suitable for those who have not had the opportunity to practice quantitative skills since school. It is designed to build confidence and develop essential skills for interpreting numerical data and understanding statistics, as well as refreshing specific numeracy skills such as percentages, ratios, averages, and currency conversions.

The course, which will run from Monday 15 June (second run Monday 19 October 2015), includes a step-by-step introduction to relevant topics and interactive quizzes to test understanding. There will be feedback at every stage.

The course is suitable if you are:

Applying for work placements or internships

Applying for employment

Applying for a course that requires you to pass numeracy skills tests

In employment seeking promotion or wishing to upskill

Anyone who wishes to refresh their knowledge of numeracy

Anyone who wishes to improve their mathematical confidence for everyday life.

Loughborough University’s Dr Janette Matthews, Lead Educator for the FutureLearn course, said: “There will be many people who feel they just simply cannot do maths, but this course will demonstrate that you can overcome anxieties and worries in order to develop the mathematical confidence you need to succeed in both employers’ numeracy tests and the workplace.”

Participants will also be given the opportunity to purchase a Statement of Participation – a personalised, printed certificate to show that they have taken part in the course.